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CLARION
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P E N I N S U L A
THURSDAY, OCTOBER 16, 2014 Kenai Peninsula, Alaska
Vol. 45, Issue 14
50 cents newsstands daily/$1.00 Sunday
New faces take oath
Question Do you agree with a federal judge’s decision to overturn Alaska’s ban on same-sex marriage? n Yes n No To place your vote and comment, visit our Web site at www. peninsulaclarion. com. Results and selected comments will be posted each Tuesday in the Clarion, and a new question will be asked. Suggested questions may be submitted online or e-mailed to news@peninsulaclarion.com.
Three assembly members moving on
In the news Sullivan, Begich report funds raised
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JUNEAU (AP) — Republican U.S. Senate candidate Dan Sullivan raised more money than Democratic Sen. Mark Begich during the latest fundraising quarter. Sullivan raised $2.8 million for the period, which includes $264,000 reported in a July pre-primary filing. Begich reported raising $1.9 million, which includes $423,000 from the July report. Begich and Sullivan each ended the quarter with about $1.2 million available. Sullivan reported $43,000 in debt, which the campaign said was from the primary. The race’s outcome could help decide control of the U.S. Senate. Republicans, hoping to pick up six seats nationally, consider Begich vulnerable. Begich spokesman Max Croes says Begich has the cash and on-the-ground resources to make a strong push to the election. Sullivan spokesman Mike Anderson says Sullivan’s fundraising shows Alaskans are excited to support his candidacy.
Inside ‘When it’s dark and cold and there’s nothing to do, it works for us.’ ... See page B-5
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By DAN BALMER Peninsula Clarion Photo by Rashah McChesney/Peninsula Clarion
Flight school
ologist Pat Shields and assistant area management biologist Aaron Dupuis, contained a table that showed a final sockeye passage of 1.52 million sockeye up the Kenai River. The passage estimate is well in excess of the top end of the sustainable escapement goal of 700,000 to 1.2 million sockeye salmon. It’s a table that is published each year, containing the same data — but this year, something changed. Board of Fisheries members wanted Fish and Game staff to include data showing that while the inriver goal had been exceeded by nearly 300,000 fish, final fish escapement data would likely show that fish passage did not exceed the other two escapement goals for those sockeye salmon. Once sockeye salmon make it past the drift boat gillnets and
Kenai Peninsula Borough Assembly members said goodbye on Tuesday to three outgoing members and welcomed their elected replacements. Termed-out members Charlie Pierce, Bill Smith and Assembly President Hal Smalley took part in their last assembly meeting. Blaine Gilman, Kelly Cooper and Stan Welles were sworn into office and will take their place at the Oct. 28 meeting. Gilman was elected to the Kenai district with nearly 50 percent of the vote in a threeway race with Jake Thompson and Grayling Bassett. Cooper ran unopposed for the Homer district. Welles won the Sterling and Funny River seat with 46.58 percent of the votes over LaDawn Druce and Marty Anderson. Kenai Peninsula Borough Mayor Mike Navarre was reelected to his second term and sworn in Tuesday. The assembly certified the results of the borough election and passed the resolution in the consent agenda. Navarre said it is a big responsibility holding elected office and he would continue to work diligently. He said the new assembly members over
See BOARD, page A-8
See NEW, page A-2
Nathan Warren, of Soldotna, talks about the physics of launching a plane to Alston Thomas, 10, Wednesday in Soldotna.
Board asks for summary change Commercial report amended due to issues with ‘nomenclature’ By RASHAH McCHESNEY Peninsula Clarion
No matter how far they travel, members of the Alaska Board of Fisheries cannot seem to stop talking about Cook Inlet salmon. A work session that began Wednesday in Juneau started with one member asking the Alaska Department of Fish and Game to amend its commercial salmon season summary in Upper Cook Inlet due to issues with “nomenclature.” At issue is a portion of the summary that lists the number of sockeye estimated to have passed into their spawning beds on several rivers, lakes and creeks in the Cook Inlet. Staff at Fish and Game were asked to change a table in the summary to add a sockeye salmon escapement goal range — one that the current end-of-
Photo by Michael Penn/Juneau Empire
Chairman Karl Johnstone, center, runs a Board of Fisheries meeting at Centennial Hall on Wednesday in Juneau. Along with Johnstone are board members Fritz Johnson, left, Tom Kluberton, second from left, Glenn Haight, Executive Director, second from right, and John Jensen. The meetings continue on today.
season fish passage estimate on The summary, which was isthe Kenai River comes much sued Oct. 10 by Soldotna-area closer to meeting. commercial management bi-
Appeals court puts gay marriage on hold By MARK THIESSEN Associated Press
ANCHORAGE — The federal appeals court for the West on Wednesday issued a temporary halt to gay marriages in Alaska, just hours before most couples would be allowed to tie
the knot. A three-judge panel of the 9th Circuit Court of Appeals in San Francisco granted a temporary halt until late Friday morning to allow the state to take its case to the U.S. Supreme Court. The appeals court said bar-
ring a stay from the nation’s highest court, gay marriages would resume in Alaska at 11 a.m. Friday. “Based on what’s happened with Nevada and Idaho, I don’t really see how they are going to get a stay from the Supreme Court,” said Allison Mendel,
the lead attorney for five gay couples who sued to overturn Alaska’s ban on gay marriage. The Supreme Court did issue a temporary stay to Idaho, but that was lifted Wednesday and gay couples began marrying. “I think it’s probably a disappointment to people who
thought they were getting married tomorrow, but I doubt it will be much more than that,” she said. U.S. District Judge Timothy Burgess on Sunday struck down the ban put in place by Alaska voters in 1998 limiting See STAY, page A-8
Kasilof man arrested Navarre, Knackstedt claim seats in heroin, meth bust A Kasilof man was found with $38,000 worth of heroin in his home last Friday. Paul Robson, 33, was arrested for second-degree misconduct involving a controlled substance, two counts of fourthdegree misconduct involving a controlled substance and violating conditions of release. Multiple agencies including Alaska State Troopers, state Drug Enforcement Unit and the Kenai Police Department served a search warrant to Robson’s house on Oct. 10. The investigation found Rob-
son in possession of 95.7 grams of heroin and 11.5 grams of methamphetamines. The street value of the meth is estimated at $3,500. Police also recovered a stolen rifle and a snowmachine. Robson also faces 10 felony drug charges in a separate case dating back to a May 2013 arrest. Trial call in that case is scheduled for the week of Dec. 10 before Superior Judge Carl Bauman. Robson is currently jailed at Wildwood Pretrial Facility. His next court date is scheduled Oct. 21 in Kenai District Court. — Dan Balmer
By DAN BALMER Peninsula Clarion
After counting more than 300 absentee votes, Tim Navarre and Henry Knackstedt have received the most votes for the two at-large Kenai City Council seats. The results of the election were certified at Wednesday’s city council meeting. Unofficial results on election night had Navarre and Knackstedt with the most votes while incumbent Mike Boyle trailed by 20 votes. Knackstedt’s lead grew with C
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100 of the 311 absentee votes, while Boyle received 67 additional votes. Navarre won re-election with 649 total votes while Knackstedt received 604 votes. Boyle, who has served on the council since 2004, finished third with 551 and came up 53 votes short for re-election. Votes for Holly Spann totaled 281. Out of 5,101 registered voters in Kenai, 28 percent voted in the election. Navarre said Boyle and Spann ran a good race and clean campaign. He said he
looks forward to another three years and will continue to work on what he believes is Kenai’s No. 1 priority — bluff erosion. Knackstedt said he has a good working relationship with Navarre on the Kenai Planning and Zoning Commission and will approach the job with common sense. “I’m a hard working person and my strength is my energy and knowledge,” he said. “I appreciate the support of the public. Nothing is worth having unless you have to work See KENAI, page A-8